Jim Riggleman On September Rosters

The Los Angeles Dodgers brought a roster of 36 players to Cincinnati for this three-game series.  From April through August Major League teams are limited to 25 active players.

Jim Riggleman, who is also not a fan of the Designated Hitter, would like to see the September roster expansion to as many as 40 players, curtailed.

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"No other sports does this," Riggleman said.  "I felt this way for a long time. The first time I spoke about it, I was with the Cubs.  We were playing the Pirates.  We may have set a record with the number of pinch hitters we used.  It was ridiculous.  (Jim) Leyland, the Pirates manager, came to me the next day and told me 'I'm glad you said that.  It really needs to be said.'  Just about every manager, I've ever spoken to says, it's stupid."

Riggleman believes their will be a change someday.  There is a hurdle of getting the Players Association to agree. There has been suggestions such as bring them up but every night designate 30 players.

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"To me it should be 25," Riggleman said.  "We play with 25 during the course of the year.  It should be 25.  Now, a lot of suggestions have been made.  You have four starting pitchers.  You take four guys off.  That gives you four more bullpen guys or four more utility guys.  That's not going to solve it.  It would take some work but they could come up with a formula of ok anybody who has been on your club to get X amount of innings or X amount of at bats or X amount of relief appearances.  Those people should have to be on your roster every night.  Guys like Mason Williams or Dixon could come off and you can put on Guerrero or Trahan.  Your team, to me. should be your core team.  That's the way I feel about it."

Riggleman feels it takes the managerial strategy out of the game.

"I don't want to disrespect anyone but if you take Tony La Russa or Earl Weaver, great game managers, great strategist, his advantage against the other manager and you're paying top dollar for because he's really good.  That goes out the window in September because he could make all kinds of moves, he couldn't make in June but they have three counters for it because they have all these extra players."

"I can't think of another sport that does it," Riggleman said.  "I think the Players Association would be totally against it (changing the rule).  The guys would get their full service time for coming up but just would not be active on some days."

Some argue that it is a long season and sometimes players need a rest late in the year.

"I think it takes a little bit away from the integrity of the game," Riggleman said.  "We're not in the playoff hunt but if we bring up a bunch of players and we put them out to play against another team, they say, 'wow, look at the team they put out to play against the Dodgers.  They don't have a representative team out there.'  I think there is a way to do it.  I think there is a better way to go from 25 to 36 the way the Dodgers are right now.  I would do it too, if I was them.  I don't think it should be allowed."

"I've never spoken to a manager that really likes it," Riggleman said.  "I don't agree with any of it.  Twenty-five is a good number.  The talk of a grueling schedule.  Come on.  We have four more off days.  It's supposed to be a grind.  It's supposed to be grueling.  It is important to see who is able to fight through the grind of a long season."

"I look at the minor leagues," Riggleman said, who spent 17 years in the minor leagues.  "The minor league has a much more grueling schedule.  They have shorter rosters.  We take players from them and they don't get a replacement.  They have very few off days.  There's guys down there who get fatigued with few off days, bus rides and 4 a.m. wakeup calls going from one city to the next.  It is a much tougher schedule."